The invention relates to cup dispensers and, more particularly, to dispensers for dispensing beverage cups and the like.
In some commercial establishments, particularly fast food establishments and convenience stores, paper or foam cups typically are dispensed from dispensers including a tubular housing containing a stack of cups and mounted on a wall, supported on some kind of base resting on a counter or mounted beneath a counter. The housing of a wall-mounted dispenser usually is mounted in vertical position. The housing for base-supported dispensers is vertical, horizontal or at an acute angle. In both cases, the rim of the outer most cup in the stack is supported on or restrained by a flexible retainer, such as ledges, tabs or some kind of diaphragm, located in the lower or outer end of the housing. By pulling on the outermost cup, the rim of the cup can pass over the retainer and be withdrawn from the housing.
With counter-mounted dispensers, the housing is located beneath the counter with the upper end accessible from above the counter top. This stack of cups is urged upwardly within the housing by a spring and the rim of the uppermost cup is supported beneath a flexible retainer located adjacent to the upper end of the housing. As a cup is withdrawn from the housing, the spring force urges the stack upwardly to a location where the next cup can be withdrawn.
One type cup dispenser includes a collar or mounting ring surrounding the discharge end of the housing for removably receiving a trim or retaining ring carrying a diaphragm or other cup restraining means. This collar or mounting ring typically is a separate part permanently affixed to the housing by some kind of fastener, particularly when the housing is formed from a synthetic thermoplastic material. Some fasteners, such as rivets, can create crevices and/or other cavities in which bacteria can be trapped. To qualify for certification by the National Sanitary Foundation, cup dispensers cannot include such crevices or small cavities.